5 Bourbon And Soda Pairings That Just Work

Ready to finally serve that bottle of bourbon that's been patiently sitting on your bar cart? Bourbon is delicious served neat or over rocks, but for those who find it a bit strong on its own, note that this spirit makes wonderful cocktails when blended with the right mixers. 

The reason behind this is because this iconic and very American spirit has an official bourbon tasting wheel, making it exceptionally versatile. Additionally, bourbon has at least nine common tasting notes, including spices, herbs, vanilla, fruit, smoke, wood, and nuts. With all these nuanced flavors, it's easy to add a mixer to bourbon and still end up with lovely and well-balanced drink.

It also turns out that soda-based beverages, especially flavorful ones, are the perfect pairings for bourbon. To get to the bottom of which pairings work best to make delicious bourbon cocktails, we spoke to an expert, Tiffanie Barriere, who is a cocktail educator, consultant, and the founder of The Drinking Coach. According to Barriere, there are five sodas that pair perfectly with bourbon: ginger ale or ginger beer, cola, club soda, root beer, and citrus tonic.

Tiffanie Barriere suggests starting with ginger ale and ginger beer as a gateway soda pairing for bourbon. "[Ginger ale/ginger beer is] a natural fit! The spice and sweetness bring out the caramel and vanilla in bourbon," she stated. Ginger and dried fruits, while not as common as vanilla, caramel, and oak, are also one of the popular flavor notes of whiskey, and bourbon is a type of whiskey.  

Before you mix a gingery soda with bourbon, you might wonder what the difference between ginger ale and ginger beer is, and which one is spicier. For a more robust and spicier bourbon cocktail with more ginger flavor, pair your bourbon with ginger beer. It's not uncommon for you to find floating bits of ginger in ginger beer. But if you have more of a sweet tooth, reach for that can or bottle of ginger ale instead, as ginger ale tends to be sweeter than ginger beer. 

Tiffanie Barriere's next bourbon and soda pairing recommendation is for those who like their cocktails not as sweet. For these people, club soda will work like a charm. She stated that it's "clean, crisp, and lets the bourbon shine while adding a refreshing element." Club soda, after all, is basically carbonated water. It is a relatively tasteless soda, like seltzer. But the difference between seltzer and club soda is that club soda has added minerals. 

If you're looking for a cocktail that really allows all of bourbon's tasting notes to shine through, while cutting down its stronger alcohol taste, mix the spirit with club soda. If you're unsure of which club soda brands to use, you're in luck. In the past, we've uncovered eight bartender-approved club sodas for the perfect cocktail. For example, you can't go wrong grabbing Schweppes Club Soda or Canada Dry Club Soda to use as your mixer for a bourbon cocktail. 

Back on the sweet cocktail track, the next soda Tiffanie Barriere recommended for us to pair with bourbon is root beer. She elaborated that it may be "unexpected, but the vanilla and spice in both bourbon and root beer make for a rich, creamy combination."

After all, bourbon already has a creamy mouthfeel, so adding a velvety soda would elevate its rich and luxurious texture. Her description also immediately made us think of root beer floats. So, if all this talk about dessert-esque cocktails has you craving desserts, instead of a straight bourbon root beer cocktail, you can try to booze up your next root beer float with bourbon. 

But if you're sticking to bourbon cocktails, be sure to grab a high-quality root beer brand worthy of pairing with the American spirit. We've ranked 19 best root beer brands and feel you can't go wrong pairing bourbon with root beer by brands such as Boylan or Virgils. 

Tiffanie Barriere's has a particularly light and bright soda recommendation — citrus tonic. Specifically, she recommended Fever-Tree's Clementine or Mediterranean Tonic. As she explained, "[Citrus tonic] ... adds a bright, bitter contrast that enhances bourbon's depth." 

Choosing citrus tonic as your mixer will result in an easy 2-ingredient cocktail that gives your bourbon a Paloma vibe. The Paloma is a zesty and popular cocktail usually made with tequila and a citrus juice. Swapping the tequila with bourbon is an easy switch and adding citrus tonic will take care of the citrus juice and the messy clean up that usually comes after slicing and juicing fresh fruit. Then, drinking this tangy cocktail will make you and your guests feel like you've all escaped to a tropical island.  

When asked to recommend another soda that works well with bourbon, Tiffanie Barriere enthusiastically pointed us to cola. As she explained, it's "a classic for a reason! The deep caramel and slight bitterness complement the warmth of bourbon." She further noted that two intersected in history, becoming American traditions post-Prohibition.

We can't help but agree with Barriere here, especially if the bourbon in question is Old Grand-Dad 114. Additionally, we also uncovered a simple addition for better bourbon and cola: incorporate Angostura bitters to the cocktail to elevate its flavors and add depth. Note that per cocktail, two dashes of bitters suffice. The intention is to enhance flavors without overpowering.  If you're wondering if you can use diet cola to pair with bourbon, the answer is yes. In fact, you can swap out regular cola with diet cola to make cocktails and mocktails.

And there you have it, five expert-approved, perfect bourbon and soda pairings that just work effortlessly. Cheers to simple, delicious 2-ingredient cocktails, and as always, drink responsibly.